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Multiple sclerosis relay fundraiser crosses US

By Jenni Grubbs, The Fort Morgan Times

Updated:
06/19/2013 08:02:35 AM EDT

Part of the Brush High School cross country team joins Amy VanDyke on running along state Highway 34 during her leg of the MS Run the US fundraiser, which passed through Brush Friday, June 14, 2013. VanDyke finished her run from Hudson to Wray a little before noon Monday, June 17. (Photo courtesy Jeff Marcus)

"I DID IT!!! 146 miles in 6 days!!! I feel so blessed to have been a part of such an amazing relay team. This was for those who live with MS each day," Amy VanDyke posted on her Facebook page a little before noon Monday.

Wisconsin resident VanDyke was part of a major fundraiser for multiple sclerosis research that is stretching across the United States.

She and 15 other runners are each running multiple marathons during MS Run the U.S., with the journey having started April 15 in Los Angeles and set to finish Sept. 6 in New York City.

Van Dyke's first leg of the relay was from Hudson to Wray, which is what she completed Monday.

But VanDyke isn't actually finished running for this cause.

She will run another leg in Illinois in August.

Run's origins

The nonprofit MS Run the U.S., Inc. was created in 2009 by Ashley Kumlien as a way to raise money for a disease very close to her heart -- her mother has multiple sclerosis and has suffered some of the debilitating effects that it can cause.

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which a person's immune system starts to attack the brain's nerves, specifically the myelin sheath coating the nerves, which leads to scarring and nerves that don't always send signals correctly from the brain to the body.

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That can mean anything from a loss of sensation in small patch of skin to full loss of control of limbs or loss of eyesight over a long period of time -- or in a very short amount of time.

Having been diagnosed with MS in 1980, by 2009 Jill Kumlien had been dealing with the disease and its effects for 29 years, and her daughter, Ashley, had witnessed this while growing up.

"My mom is very positive and has a great spirit and faith in God," she said, but added that she had some "significant disabilities" because of MS.

MS Run the U.S. participant Amy VanDyke, left, and founder Ashley Kumlien stopped June 14, 2013, in Brush at Diggers Diner for an interview. VanDyke is among the 15 runners raising money for research into curing multiple sclerosis, an often progressively disabling autoimmune disease. Kumlien created the relay-style fundraiser after running all the way across the United States by herself to raise money for the cause in 2010. (Jenni Grubbs/Fort Morgan Times)

"It's hard growing up and seeing that" in one's mother, but then seeing others' mothers not have to face that challenge, Ashley Kumlien said. "That's my motivation: to do something for her." And in 2009, Ashley Kumlien became really serious about doing something about the disease and working toward finding a cure.

"I've always been a lifelong runner," Ashley Kumlien said. "I got the idea to run across America" to benefit research for a cure for MS.

She took that idea and ran with it -- literally.

Ashley Kumlien formed a government-approved nonprofit charitable organization, MS Run the U.S., Inc., to collect donations that would then be given to the National MS Society.

She found sponsors to cover the costs of her 2010 run, and then gathered a whole lot more in donations that would go to the charity toward MS research.

Her 3,288-mile solo journey began March 22, 2010, in San Francisco and ended in Sept. 28, 2010, in New York City.

Once she reached Colorado, one of the places she ran through was Brush, where she met local high school cross country coach Jeff Marcus.

Himself an avid runner, Marcus ran alongside her some in that first run across the country, and they stayed in touch afterward.

And it was personal for him, too, as both his mother and his mother-in-law have MS.

"It's larger than people think," Marcus said of the disease's reach.

Runner Amy VanDyke is shown at Diggers Diner in Brush June 14, 2013, after an interview with The Fort Morgan Times. Wisconsin resident VanDyke is one of 15 people running a relay across the United States to raise money for multiple sclerosis research. "This opportunity is incredibly important to me, having become close with several multiple sclerosis sufferers," she said. "The idea of helping them and others was something I couldn't pass up." MS Run the U.S. founder Ashley Kumlien is shown at right. (Jenni Grubbs/Fort Morgan Times)

Ashley Kumlien said she was running "nearly a marathon a day, six days a week, for six months" during the first MS Run the U.S.

Along the way, she raised thousands of dollars for MS research and brought many people to her cause.

Ashley Kumlien also became the 16th woman ever to run across the United States -- but in doing so, she went through 9½ pairs of shoes with only two blisters and burned more than 270,000 calories.

Keeping it going

While Ashley Kumlien enjoyed her run across the country, afterward she knew that she needed help if she wanted to make it an annual fundraiser for the charity.

Wisconsin resident Amy VanDyke, center, is shown with Brush High School cross country runners and their coach, Jeff Marcus, back row second from right. The high school-ers escorted VanDyke into Brush on her leg of the MS Run the U.S. fundraising relay for research into curing multiple sclerosis. (Photo courtesy Jeff Marcus)

In order to attract more of those and further the cause, she needed another big event.

"This relay was my idea," she said. "I was interested in pursuing getting runners to do an endurance event and commit to fundraising" while doing it. What came next was figuring out how to make it work, and getting people interested in participating and sponsoring a relay-style run across the country.

"The difficult part was in the fall of 2012," she said. "There were not enough runners and no corporate sponsor yet. It was really difficult for me personally."

But things did come together.

"We got the runners, and we got the sponsor," she said, indicating the logo for Money Mutual, a national payday lender, splashed across the RV that travels with her and the runners along the way.

With those things in place, Ashley Kumlien continued to finalize the plan to have 15 runners complete a total of 22 segments of the run, with some doing more than one part of the journey.

The way it works is each runner commits a week of their life to running his or her segment and agrees to raise at least $10,000, Ashley Kumlien said.

She said that if the runners had done all the training and gotten the sponsors, she would then be able to "put it together and just enjoy" being along for the run.

Before the run

VanDyke was one of the people who decided to make both of the major commitments to be a part of MS Run the U.S.

She took on the hefty training regimen to get her body ready for a week of running marathons and covering 146 miles of ground.

While she already was a runner, VanDyke had been looking for something to give her running a sense of purpose.

She heard about MS Run the U.S. about a year ago when a friend at her gym mentioned something about it.

"I just thought it was a good chance to do something to help others. I like to run, and if I can help others with MS" she said, adding that she knew it was just something that she "needed to do."

"This opportunity is incredibly important to me, having become close with several multiple sclerosis sufferers," she said. "The idea of helping them and others was something I couldn't pass up."

But making sure she would be able to do the run took some planning and sacrifice -- by both VanDyke and those who love her.

Back home in Fond Du Lac, Wis., which is northwest of Milwaukee, VanDyke is a hair stylist with her own business, a wife and a mother of four, ages 20, 18, 16 and 13.

"I never could have done this a few years ago," she said.

But now the timing was right, and her family was on board with her plan to get in extremely good shape and then run across a distant part of the country for a week.

She said that because she is her own boss, she was able to have a work schedule that was very amenable to the heavy training she needed to do.

"It's really worked out well, VanDyke said.

She added that her husband and children had been "a big help," as well.

"I can't say I've done as much laundry or dishes," she said, laughing a bit. "It's definitely been a group effort."

Time to run

Before she left Wisconsin for Colorado, VanDyke said was looking forward to the trip as if it were a fancy vacation.

"I just went into it wanting to enjoy every bit of this week," she said. "I'll probably never have another chance to chill like this."

Each day during her leg, VanDyke was running about 25 miles per day until she reached Wray, which happened Monday just before noon.

During the run, VanDyke said she was drinking lots of water and eating bananas for potassium and beef jerky for protein, as well as consuming a carbohydrate-laden drink.

Ashley Kumlien said that water, electrolytes and "a good combination of carbs and protein" were important for the runners to take in.

"When you get it right, you feel so much better," VanDyke said of the special diet.

And even though VanDyke was the one running the marathons, she said that Ashley Kumlien was the one doing the work, making sure everything was going as planned as far as logistics went.

Ashley Kumlien said that the runners were responsible for their travel expenses to get to and from their start and end points.

"Once they're on their segment, we pay lodging and food," she explained.

A typical day for VanDyke during the run began early, with the alarm clock going off at 5 a.m. and running starting between 6 and 6:30 a.m., looking to beat the heat.

She would run for a total of about six hours, with a break every six miles or so for a little rest and a drink, according to Ashley.

Then they'd both head to the RV between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. and be finished with running or following for the day.

Then, it was time for VanDyke to slurp down a "recovery drink" to replace depleted electrolytes and nutrients, followed by interviews in the afternoon and then spending time with friends made along the way.

"The afternoon is really about relaxing," Ashley Kumlien said.

Bedtime was about 8:30 or 9 p.m. each night.

But there was still time for fun, too.

Ashley Kumlien made sure to take VanDyke for short adventures, such as a float trip on a Colorado lake.

"I want to go home with a nice tan," VanDyke said. "I've been on vacation, so I want to look like it."

Fundraising

At first, raising the $10,000 minimum seemed like a daunting task, VanDyke said.

VanDyke was able to get people, organizations and businesses to sponsor individual miles of each day, or "marathon," of her 146-mile run.

She had special orange tank tops printed with that day's sponsors listed on the back and the words "I run to stop MS" emblazoned on the front.

"Those are the people I'm thinking about when I go out there" to run, VanDyke said of her sponsors.

"How they do the fundraising is really up to them," Ashley Kumlien said of the runners.

She added that VanDyke had raised quite a bit more than her $10,000 minimum, indicating she had at least $12,300 as of Monday "with more still coming in."

"Initially, I thought the hardest part would be fundraising, but that surprisingly fell into place," VanDyke said, pointing to the support she received from her family and her community in Wisconsin as helping her achieve that big of a number.

"It wasn't as hard as I thought," VanDyke said. "I had never fundraised before. You never know what kind of support you'll get."

Instead, the hardest part for her wound up being balancing work, family and training in the months leading up to the run.

Lessons and fun

One of the things VanDyke said she learned through this experience was how wide a reach MS has.

"You may believe in this, but others might not," she said was one of her worries ahead of getting started with fundraising.

But she found out she need not have worried about that.

"I found out a lot of people have been touched by MS," she said. "I'm just happy to be able to help in some small way."

She said that it hadn't felt like work to do the running.

"I feel like this is almost a vacation," she said during her stop in Brush on Day 3 of her first segment and pointing to all the work she did training to be able to get there. "Here I just have to run."

"I'm really enjoying this," she said during her stop in Brush at Diggers Diner, which is owned by Marcus, the BHS Cross Country coach Ashley Kumlien had met during her initial run. "I'm thankful that I'm doing it. It could have gone either way."

VanDyke had a hard time pinpointing a favorite moment during the first few days of her run.

"Every day has been special in its own way," she said. "It was memorable from the time I got off the plane."

She did say that it was "fun" running with the Brush cross country runners and coach.

Marcus' 14-year-old son, A.J., was among those cross country runners.

"It was a cool experience," he said about getting to run along with VanDyke, adding that one day he might do a leg of his own.

And his father also expressed interest in taking on a stretch.

Jeff Marcus said that he may have to take on running one of the segments in next year's MS Run the U.S.

But VanDyke was quick to claim the Hudson-to-Wray stretch again for 2014.

"This is my segment," she said, a big grin on her face.

Ashley Kumlien suggested maybe Jeff Marcus could run the segment that goes through Pittsburgh.

He said he liked that idea, since that's where he's from.

"That'd be awesome," he told her.

Jeff Marcus said that as a coach, he tries to get his runners to be aware of the good that can be done by running for a cause, such as this.

"I think it's awesome what they're doing," he said. "It's not always about running and getting faster; it's also about a good cause."

And getting runners and running coaches like Jeff Marcus interested in participating is just what Ashley Kumlien wants.

She confirmed that planning is underway for next year's relay to keep raising money for research toward a cure for MS.

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